Jun 11, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) celebrates after a play during the third quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers in game four of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
By: Yama Hazheer
The Golden State Warriors got serious and took care of business Thursday night in Cleveland against the surging Cavaliers.
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There’s been talk of the Warriors not being ready for this stage. Some called them soft; others said that the Cavaliers were getting into their head. Pesky Matthew Dellavedova was labeled as the “MVP Stopper” and LeBron James was making a case for having one of the most remarkable Finals performances the league has ever seen.
Golden State put a pause to that (or perhaps an end) in Game 4. Unlikely changes prior to the game changed the dynamics of everything.
Andre Iguodala started for the first time in over 100 games and Andrew Bogut was not jumping for the ball to start the game. Steve Kerr elected to go small and start Draymond Green at center and Harrison Barnes at the four. It paid off.
Jun 11, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
A Mo Speights missed dunk and some desperation even called for David Lee in Game 3, and it resulted in a crack into the rotation after impressive minutes from the classy, former All-Star.
Make no mistake, the Cavaliers are not the same without Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, but they did improve on the defensive side of the ball. Tristan Thompson is a better defender than Love and Dellavedova is a better defender than Irving.
The injuries also gave The King more touches and we all know how dangerous he can be with the ball in his hands. He is the best player in the world.
However, the Warriors didn’t win 67 games during the regular season and cruise through the Western Conference by accident. They are a better team than the Cavaliers.
They just haven’t played like it for the first three games. Maybe the stage was too big for them to start. Kevin Durant struggled in his first NBA Finals. LeBron James struggled in his first NBA Finals. Most star players do. Stephen Curry did, but he seems to have found his swagger back on the court. With two games remaining at Oracle Arena, it will be tough to slow him down moving forward.
With all the Dellavedova defending Curry hype, people seem to forget how well Iguodala is defending James. He is putting up huge numbers because there are no other legitimate scoring options on the team right now. The Cavs can’t count on J.R. Smith and Dellavedova to score 20 points on a consistent basis.
Iguodala is holding James to just 38% shooting in the Finals throughout the first four games. In 2007, the San Antonio Spurs swept James and he only shot 35%. Iguodala is living up to his big contract with his play this series and could steal Finals MVP if Golden State wins.
Lee has also done well in both of his appearances in the Finals. It seemed like he would never get playing time in a moment this big, but has delivered every time his name has been called upon. He even exchanged words with Dellavedova at the end of the first quarter in Game 4. Lee brought surprising toughness to a team desperate for a win.
Jun 11, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Credit: Paul Sancya-Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports
Speaking of toughness, Bogut gave the Warriors just that on Thursday. He played only three minutes, but committed three fouls in that short time span. Most of them were hard ones and let the Cavaliers know that the Warriors do not lack a physical game.
Draymond Green finally looked like himself and put up a typical Draymond Green stat line with 17 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 5 fouls. He played great defense. Him and Klay Thompson both did well on that side of the ball and Curry held his own too.
Shaun Livingston played more minutes than anyone off the bench and had 7 points to go with 8 rebounds. He led the team in plus/minus with a +25 in 25 minutes.
Klay Thompson was quiet and Curry didn’t have an excellent game by any means, but he played consistent throughout and had his best game of the series for a full 48-minute course.
The Warriors played bad in the first three games and didn’t look like themselves at all and barely lost those contests. They played closer to what they really are in Game 4 and blew out the Cavs on the road.
With two home games remaining and only one in Cleveland; the Warriors will look to take advantage of this best of three series. They put themselves in favorable position by gaining home court advantage back and gained tons of momentum to go with it.
Don’t look now, but the Warriors are just two wins away from hoisting the Larry O’Brien trophy. For the Warriors and their fans, it’ll be a surreal sight to see.